His hands grip the wheel and the cool air from the vents brush my hair back. He drives slow yet steady, allowing enough time to catch a glimpse of the scenery passing by. A jogger, a mother and her baby taking a stroll around the block, an elderly couple hand in hand. I can't help but smile after viewing such happy people walk by. There was silence but it was the kind that doesn't bother.
Henry reaches a red light and puts the car to a halt. Two kids cross with their bikes, waving to us as they proceed along their way. They finally reach the sidewalk on the other end and my eyes return to the one in which they come from. Standing there, a young woman. I squint at the sight of her appearance. Her clothes adopt an older, Victorian era. She wore on her a long sleeve maroon shirt which accompanied the navy blue skirt that was partially covered by an off-white apron. Her hair was held in a bun and her face had captivating features. Although only being able to see her side profile, she had a defined jaw with carved cheekbones. Her skin, fair as snow and hair engulfed in a jet black color. Her face mirrored that of a lady, but I have yet to know the secret behind her clothing.
The light changes and the car gets slowly closer to the woman. As each car passes by, I'm finally close enough to see her full complexion. I take my opportunity to see this oddity on the street. My eyes trail her fair skin, moving onto the tip of her beautifully carved nose... then the color scheme changed. Her fair skin remained no more, replaced by blackened skin which blotches of red. The black stain on her skin began on her mouth and ran through her cheek to her temple. Surrounding areas of skin held red, aching burns. I try and take in as much as I can. My face has turned into complete confusion. The three seconds passing her stretched into a minute as the image of her remained in my mind.
I blink hard and try to find myself in the dark confinement of my closed eyes. I look down at my lap and blink a few more times.
"Did-did you see her?!" I blurt out, my voice tight. My eyes begin to shift to the side view mirror trying to find her again. "Who," Henry's eyebrows furrow, When?"
"That lady!" I say turning around in my seat to look back at an object long gone.
"No love," his gruff voice glides with his British accent, "I'm sorry, I didn't"
"Gosh..." I breathe out. My chest lifts up and down multiple times before it returns to normal. "She was petrifying... she had third degree burn on only one side of her face!" I proceed, with my eyes widening.
"What?! Oh come on! There's no way..." He cracks a smile and checks his mirrors.
I suddenly realize how I must sound... a lady with burns on her face. I must sound delusional. This is my first date... I simply cannot mess this up.
I quickly breathe in and let out a chuckle.
"You're right, I have no idea how I saw that."
"No worries, happens to me all the time."
I turn to him, "Come again?"
"Yeah, like sometimes I see things that aren't there."
"I didn't expect that..."
"Well thats why we're going to dinner right," He quickly glances at me, "to get to know each other?"
"Oh yeah," I snicker, "of course."
~
He reaches the parking lot of the restaurant. Henry takes the keys out and exits the car. I look around, making sure I didn't leave anything outside of my purse. The car door startles me as Henry holds it open.
"Oh! Wow, thank you!" I let out a light laugh and reach for his extended hand to exit the warm car.
I keep up with his pace and we arrive to the door. He takes the handle and pulls it open. A burst of air hits me, causing me to shrug my shoulders and bend my knees. I giggle and turn to him, his face already had a kind smile and he places his hand on my lower back. This gesture alone sets my body temperature and melts the cold wind away. The heat rushes to my cheeks as once before and I quickly fan my face to rid myself of them.
He finally makes his way through the door and stands to the left of me. That one gesture has me shattered and struggling to regain my composure. We patiently wait for the couple in front of us to be seated. The host exchanges words with Henry and we are quickly assigned a table.
"Only the best for our Bremners!" The hostess gushed as she left the menus on the table.
"Bremner..." I repeated, over and over.
After taking a few good looks at the menu, I decide on a Lamb Salad with fregola. My order is followed by Henry's medium-well steak. The waiter takes our menus and leaves us to speak.
Henry breaks the silence, "Well... if you can't tell, I'm pretty nervous right now." He gives a quick chuckle as he clears his throat.
"Oh believe me, I am too..." I'm suddenly reminded of the book, "Oh! I forgot, I found something the other day. At the house, of course." I turn to reach in my bag. My hand grasps the book frame and I turn around to show him. "I didn't know if you wanted it back, maybe something of sentimental value?"
His hands grab the book, his eyes skimming through each page. "No no, these pictures are too old. They're of a family generation before us who owned the house prior to my great grandfather."
"Oh... I see."
"Yeah, don't worry it's all yours."
His lips form a smile and he hands it back to me.
I place it back in my bag and return my gaze onto his face. His face was a sight for sore eyes, everything from his strong jaw to his sensuous lips had me mesmerized. His green eyes, tugging at my attention every few glimpses. I can't help but let my eyes wonder to his hair, it urged me to run my fingers through it's soft texture. His eyes were framed by wonderfully full brows and his nose was the perfect size for his diamond face. At this moment, we are both taking in each other's features. He stops my gaze with a question, which led to another, which led to yet another.
~
"I can't explain to you how much you fascinate me." He marvels.
His choice of words speed up my pumping heart.
"How come?" I say with intentions of finding out an answer.
"Everything about you, your career- I mean a Forensic Pathologist?! Come on! That's the sexiest thing I've ever heard." His sentence makes me smile broadly.
"Me?! I mean look at you! You're a Anesthesiologist! Don't give me all the credit!" I object while taking sips of red wine.
He lets out a laugh and starts signing the check.
~
Our laughs hadn't stopped till we reached the front door. The cold air seemed as a mere nothing now. He pushes open the door and walks next to me. We enjoy the silence between us as we act like little kids with their first crushes. He opens the car door and I snuggle inside, making sure to place my purse at my feet. He makes his way around the car and lets himself in. The engine awakes and he reverses the car out of the parking. "I had such a great time tonight..." he says with the bright lights of other cars illuminating his face.
"So did I, you know how to keep a conversation going."
"That is true, but then again, you sure kept me on edge with your questions."
"Only because I was curious... and I wanted to see if you were worth my time."
The sound of my last words make him shoot a quick glance. Quick enough to see my smirk.
"Worth your time?! Please elaborate Ms. Freyman, I'm curious." He lifts his eyebrow. His statement sounded like a plea.
"You don't have the luxury of knowing." I say, continuing this "cat and dog" play.
"Hmm... we'll see what luxuries I have later." He says putting his turn signal into the road leading home.
After a few exchanged remarks, we finally reach my house. Henry stops the car and turns off the engine. He shifts his body towards me, "Now tell me... am I worth your time..." I glimpse at his deep green eyes wanting more.
"It's just that I'm 23 and I've never had a formal date before... not to mention a formal relationship. I've never done any of this and I need to make sure that I don't waste my time on the first try." My heart races with every passing second. I lick my lips as they're in dire need for his. The silence of the night only intensifies our voices.
"You've never done this before?" His eyebrows lift. I so desperately want the space between us to close. "No, never."
"What else haven't you done..." He says moving closer. I decide to do the same. His eyes move to my lips and I slow my breathing. He takes one hand on neck and pulls me in. He places his lips onto mine and sends a wave of heat onto my whole body. The strong feeling is like a pulse, running up to my red ears and down to my buckled knees. I get even closer, invading his space and grip his arms. The feel of his muscles under his cotton shirt causes shivers down my arms. I can't control myself, I decide to kiss him back over and over. I couldn't get enough. The rush was exhilarating, I tighten my grip and place my other hand on his neck. He positions his heavy hands on my waist, trying to minimize the little space we had left. His lips move to my jaw. Making me melt, his stubble rubbing against my skin as he left a trail of kisses to my neck. His actions leave me completely debilitated, I moan as he kisses deeper. He runs his left hand up and down my thigh and I reposition his lips onto mine. His kisses where strong, passionate, and leaving me weak.
"You're gonna be the end of me." He breathes heavily. He finds his way back to my neck and his wet kisses on my collar bone make my fingers tighten around his hair. "Oh my gosh," I shakily say out of breath, "We need to stop." I say gripping his arms even tighter because I truly don't want this to end. "No no..." he says in between kisses, "we don't have to."
I take his face into my hands and give him a long kiss. Our tongues intertwine and he pushes on me, begging for more.
Conflicting thoughts fill my mind, "Is this it?! Am I going to let him in that easily?! Wow Scarlett, you sure can't play hard to get. But this can't happen! He's just so irresistible...No! No, this needs to stop! What if he's not the one?!"
I pull away and wipe my mouth. Our breaths are both heavy and we've created heat in the car. He stares at me, licking his lips. I watch his chest rise and fall with the sound of his breath. "I can't do this right now, you need to give me time." I try and catch my breath.
"Oh no, was this too sudden? I'm so sorry if it was."
"No it's-"
"I just couldn't get enough of you..."
"I know what you mean." I run my fingers through his hair and bite my lip. "I gotta go now." I say ruining eye contact and reaching for my purse.
"Do you need me to walk you to your door?"
"No! I'll call you right when I get in. Ok?"
He breaks into a smile, "I'll be waiting."
I bite my lip and blow a kiss to him as he drives away.